Bedstead supported traction device



Sept. 13, 1955 T' s. MILLMAN 2,717,595

BEDSTEAD SUPPORTED TRACTION DEVICE Filed May 29, 1955 INVENTOR. SamuelMinman "I. 5 1 BY W/ T United States Patent BEDSTEAD SUPPORTED TRACTIONDEVICE Samuel Millman, Revere, Mass.

Application May 29, 1953, Serial No. 358,346 Claims. (o1. 128-84) Thepresent invention relates to a portable traction device used inorthopedic therapy for applying traction to a patient confined to bed.In general devices of this nature include a considerable amount ofrigging, not only to the bed but sometimes from the ceiling and wallsupports. One of the purposes of the present invention is to provide atraction device which can be entirely supported from and mounted on thehead board or foot board of the bed or some extension clamped to orprovided on the bed.

A further purpose of the present invention is to supply a rigging whichis simple to operate and readily adjustable for applying a tractionsling for the head, neck, shoulders, legs and body of the patient. Thedevice of the present invention may be mounted on the head boardby beingadjustably strapped and clamped around the head board and the devicefurther provides a pulley which may be adjusted at any height on thehead board for use with a traction sling or other orthopedic device.

Further advantages and improvements of the present invention will bemore readily understood from the de scription and specification setforth below when taken in connection with the drawings illustratinganembodiment thereof, in which:

Figure 1 shows more or less. schematically the traction device orrigging as applied to a head board of the bed.

Figure 2 shows in perspective a detail of the mounting element at thetop of the bed board.

Figure 3 shows in perspective, clamping device for tightening therigging to the bed.

Figure 4 shows a side view of-the clamping device of Figure 3 in aclosed position.

Figure 5 shows a detail of the adjustable pulley and,

Figure 6 shows a top view of the adjustable pulley as viewed lookingdown upon Figure 5 with parts shown in section.

In the arrangement indicated in Figure 1, 1 is the bed post or headboard of the bed which in the usual construction is provided with anopening 2 about or below the level of the mattress.

The top of the head board may have a flat end as indicated at 3, or itmay be rounded, the shape in particular not being material.

011 the top end of the head board is mounted a pulley support andpulleys 4. The pulley support and pulleys are shown better in Figure 2.They comprise a bar 5 which may be made of aluminum or other material atthe ends of which there are provided forked bearings 6, 6, in which thepulleys 7, 7 are supported by means of the shafts 8, 8. The pulleys arefree to turn in the support bar 5. The support bar 5 is welded orattached to a clamping plate 9, which may be made of sheet metal and isbent in the form of a channel with the sides 10, 10, extending downwardsat the sides of the bed post or head board 1. These sides may be made tocontact and grip the board 1 or it simply may rest in a fairly good fiton the top of the bed board. The side elements 10, 10, are provided "icewith slots 11, 11 which are shown in Figure 2 in the upper portion ofthe channel. The strap 12 is threaded through these slots in such a waythat the sides 10, 10 are held without slipping and securely against thehead board. The strap therefore rests on the top of the bed board 1 butextends outside of the channel and serves in this manner to provide afirm grip for the channel to the bed board. The strap 12 extendsdownward through the adjustable pulley 13 which will be described later,under and through the lower edge of the head board indicated by thedotted line 14 and upward to the clamp 15 Where it is firmly secured.

The clamp 15 is shown in Figures 3 and 4. This clamp which may be madeout of aluminum, iron or other desirable metal, or even very hardplastic or other composition material, is constructed of a channel piece16 with sides 17 and 18 extending at right angles to the base 19 of thecontainer. In the side pieces 17 and 18 towards their bottom end, thereare formed inclined slots 20 and 21, and through this slot there extendsa pin 22. The clamp is always or practically always held in a positionindicated in Figure 3, although this is not necessary, since the pin 22may be held down in which case it presses the strap 12 against the backwall 19 of the channel 15 to clamp the strap firmly in place.

When the device is applied to a bed, the strap is pushed up fairlytightly under the pin 22 or rather between the pin 22 and the back wall19 so that when the strap is moved downward again, even a slightdistance, the pin 22 descends downward in the slots 219 and 21 which areinclined towards the back of the channel. The strap 12 at its upper endis looped about a pin 23 and has its end section 24- held by means ofthe snap fastener 25 or some other means not clearly shown, to the bedportion of the strap. The clamp therefore can be readily removed wherethe fastener is of the type which may be opened, as for instance a snapfastener type. The pin 23 extends across the side of a U. shaped bracketor support 26 and is positioned in such a way that it lies nearer oneedge of the sides of the- U shaped member, for instance the edge 27 thanthe edge 28. This U shaped bracket is pivoted at the upper end of thesides of the square shaped channel as indicated at 29 and 30. The pointsof pivot 29 and 30 are towards the outer edges 31 and 32 of the sides 17and 18 of the channel 15. The purpose in this is obvious from Figure 4,which shows the clamp in a closed position. In the closed position shownin Figure 4, the strap about the pivoted pin 23 is pivoted to the rightof the pivot 29 and tends to force the U shaped bracket 26 against theback wall 19 of the channel 15. Therefore whenthe clamp is closed, sincethe pull on the strap 12 is to the right of the pivot 29, the tendencywill be for the clamp to stay closed as any increased stress will simplypull the clamp 26 harder against the back wall 19. Therefore after thestrap has been set up in its position under the pin 22 and the U shapedbracket 26 swung around in the direction of the arrow A, the strap andpulley will be tightly clamped in position.

Mounted on the strap is the adjustable pulley mounting means 33. Thestructure of this is shown in Figures 5 and 6. It comprises a piece ofmetal which has two forked flanges 34 and 35 which are ends of arectangular frame 36 comprising side elements 37, 38, and a back element39, preferably all formed of a single piece of material.

The rectangular shaped frame 36 is provided with a slot 42 in whichrests a T-shaped member 40, the ends of the cross bar 41 of which lie inthe slot 42 which extends around from the sides 37 and 38 across theback 39. The central bar element 43 of the T-shaped member is threadedand passes through a hole in the shaft 44 3 which is freely supported inholes 45 and 46 in the side plates 37 and 38 of the rectangular frame36.

The end of the stem 43 of the T, carries a knurled disc 47 which bearsagainst the shoulders 48 and 49 in the frame 36 just at the junctionwhere the flanges 35 and 34 extend outward.

The pulley 50 is journalled by a rivet 51 in the forked supports 34 and35. The strap 12 is threaded between the pin 40 and the rear wall 39 ofthe frame. The cross bar 41 of the T piece, when moved to the right bythe rotation of the knurled disc 47, forces the strap 12 against therear wall 39 and firmly clamps the strap in place. The adjustable pulleymounting means 33 may therefore be moved up and down along the strap 12and clamps in any position that may be desired.

The traction sling, as for instance a neck sling 52, is tensioned bymeans of the cord 53 which passes around the pulley 50 upward throughthe pulley 7-7 and downward on the outside of the bed where a weight 54may be attached.

It is readily seen that the arrangement may be applied to a bed veryquickly; that there is no permanent attachment necessary; that it may beeasily removed, and that it can be adjusted for any inclination of thecord 53 whether used for the head, body or legs of the patient.

Variations in structure of the elements may be made without departingfrom the spirit of the invention as defined by the claims.

Having now described my invention, I claim:

1. A traction device for a bed or the like including pulleys and asupport therefore adapted to be secured on the top of the head board, apulley and pulley mounting means adapted to be adjustably secured at theinner side of the bed between the top and bottom of the head board, acontinuous strap passing through the support and the pulley mountingmeans adapted to extend around the front and back of the head board,clamping means positioned on said strap for holding said pulley mountingmeans securely in place and a traction assembly having a cord passingover said pulleys on the top and around said pulley on the side of thehead board.

2. A traction device for a bed or the like having a headboard, includinga rigging having a pair of pulleys mounted on a longitudinal bar with achannel member supporting said bar and having the sides of the channelmember adapted to extend over the sides of the headboard, an adjustablepulley, a forked bearing mounting said pulley, a rectangular framesupporting said forked bearing having an adjustable clamping elementtherein for securing a strap passing therethrough, a clamping strapextending around the channel member and through said rectangular frameand adapted to encircle about said head board, clamping means at theends of said strap for securing said strap tightly around said headboard, whereby the pulley mountings are securely clamped, and a tractionassembly having a cord passing over said first named pulleys and aroundsaid last pulley for applying the desired traction to a patient in thebed.

3. In a traction device for a bed or the like, a pulley means andsupport adapted to rest and be secured on the head board of a bedcomprising a channel frame with the sides extending downward, alongitudinal bar secured to the cross piece of the channel member, apair of pulleys mounted in forked bearings at the end of saidlongitudinal bar and strap means passing through pairs of slots in theopposite sides of said channel frame adjacent the cross piece wherebythe pulley support is secured at the top of the head board of the bed.

4. In a traction device for a bed or the like, an adjustable pulleymember for adjusting the inclination of the traction device with respectto the patient, comprising a clamping strap adapted to be clamped aroundthe head board of a bed in an upwardly and downwardly extendingdirection, an adjustable pulley assembly including a pair of forkedbearings, a pulley freely rotatably mounted in said forked bearings, arectangular frame supporting said forked bearings through which saidstrap is drawn, said rectangular frame having a slot in the back andpartly in the sides thereof, a bar extending transversely across saidrectangular frame and resting in the slot at each side thereof and meanson said frame for forcing said bar against said strap whereby said barand the wall of said frame will firmly grip the strap and hold thepulley assembly firmly in place.

5. In a traction device for a bed or the like, an adjustable pulleymember for adjusting the inclination of the traction device with respectto the patient, comprising a clamping strap adapted to be clamped aroundthe head board of a bed in an upwardly and downwardly extendingdirection, an adjustable pulley assembly including a pair of forkedbearings, a pulley freely rotatably mounted in said forked bearings, arectangular frame supporting said forked bearings through which saidstrap is drawn, said rectangular frame having a slot in the back andpartly in the sides thereof, a bar extending transversely across saidrectangular frame and resting in the slot at each side thereof, andmeans for forcing said bar against said strap, comprising a rod freelyresting in holes in the sides of said rectangular frame, a stem formingwith said bar a T-shaped member, said stem passing through a hole insaid rod and being threaded at the end thereof, and a threaded discengaging with said stem and bearing on a shoulder of said rectangularframe opposite from the end of the frame in which said slot ispositioned whereby when said threaded disc is turned, said bar willpress said strap against the wall of said frame for securing the pulleyassembly firmly in a desired position.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS511,350 Mohring Dec. 26, 1893 1,021,688 LeJeune Mar. 26, 1912 1,183,425Ballou May 16, 1916 1,296,128 Siebrandt Mar. 4, 1919

